Author Archive: henry

Each week sees the launch of dons of new and revamped with new functionality apps entering into the shelves of Apples iStore making it extremely tough to discern the wheat from the chaff. This makes it easy to miss some of the best while being bogged down with something not worth your precious time or the precious space on your smart device. The below apps represent the best of their kind as well as some innovating new ideas that sees the light of day for the first time.

FaceParty allows its users to compile looping video collages placed in a grid consisting of four squares. Users can then record for videos to fill each separate slot where after each of the videos will loop endlessly. It works by simply tapping one of the squares to quickly record a video clip of a memorable moment, repeating the process four times to fill each one of the four squares. The video action offers no zoom, effects, or filters, however users may reshoot numerous times until they are satisfied with the final product, where after they may save their GIF creations to their camera roll or even share them on social media. The app allows its users to swap seamlessly between the selfie as well as the rear-facing camera.

Facet offers a new functionality to lovers of travel videos in that it works similarly to Pinterest. It will serve its users bite -sized video clips recorded at the calls all over the globe each day, where they may view a massive variety of topics ranging from local food trends to popular tourist attractions. Users can then opt to save their favourite video clips to their own Pinterest -like boards or even record and share their personal videos on-line.

Nuzzel has already become many users’ new absolute favourite reading app, and it’s just received a significant update to enable its users to find the stories they wish to read in a more user-friendly fashion. This latest renovation and add-ons provide a brand-new discovery and search feature that provides a user experience that is greatly enhanced. Users simply connect their newly installed app to their favourite social media accounts and this app will Paul the latest stories and news your friends may be sharing the greatest number of times across their networks including any comments they might have made about their stories.

Hopefully this Christmas after all the excitement of the festivities have calmed down this year we will all have some time off to relax and recuperate from the frenetic pace of life in the run-up to, and during the festivities. Some of us enjoy spending this time to catch up on a bit of leisure reading that they might not have time for in our busy schedules during the year; the two apps reviewed below both provide brilliant alternatives to the well-known reader apps such as Kindle.

Aldiko may be one of the lesser-known readers that you might not have given a try as yet, however it is super customisable and easily accessible as part of the package it also offers a fantastic e-book store. The app offers a simplistic design that immediately and quickly offers you their bookshelf containing a treasure trove of free content; it certainly is a worthwhile alternative app simply because it transforms any half-decent smart phone into a highly competent e-reader without costing its users a single penny.

Most importantly, the app supports all major e-book file types, PDF, ePub, and Adobe’s DRM encrypted book types. Aldiko truly earns its colours with any book type delivered with zero encryption, such as classic books that are currently sans copyright restrictions like Pride and Prejudice and Sherlock Holmes et cetera. Part of its greatness is that it allows users to pull their e-books from anywhere on their Android devices and start reading instantaneously, even from cloud storage sites that includes Google Drive, Dropbox, One Drive, and numerous others.

Aldiko offers it users complete control of how they read the e-books, they can customise just about any setting to suit their personal preferences, including font types, font sizes, font colours, background colours, type direction, brightness, spacing, margins, and a number of others. Users unable to find a comfy reading interface within all of Aldiko’s customisability will in all probability not be able to read with any measure of comfort on any electronic device.

Goodreads offers its users an excellent reference point for book recommendations. Anyone in the market for honest opinions on just about any book they may wish to read, or even share their own personal opinions on a specific title will find this app most useful. It taps into the world’s biggest social network for on-line readers, where they will be able to read reviews in excess of 12 million books contributed by its over 35 million members. Members will be able to build a personal virtual bookshelf on books they have read and continuously bold there to read list as they discover new great books offered by reviews within the app.

Very little in the world manages to shake off those slight feelings of depression and inertia in the short pre-summer months as a few early season home improvements. This counts for any form of home improvement, immaterial of whether one might just consider purchasing a few essential home decoration items or do a complete interior makeover. To accomplish this with comfort and ease of mind the below apps have proven themselves to provide their users with a pretty good preview impression of what their newly refreshed, or refurbished home would look like.

The carefully selected range of renovation, home design, and décor refinishing apps below, having proven themselves over a period, preventing the heartache of losing hours worth of work to an unstable or unproven app.

Houzz is available to both Android as well as iOS users and offers potential amateur designers as well as professionals a wonderful tool, where one can obtain a massive variety of design ideas from a catalogue boasting in excess of 5 million curated image files in high-resolution. Uses have the option of setting a variety of filters in this otherworldly collection, allowing them to rearrange images by room, style, or location with just about any keyword. The app offers its users the capability of saving images of their choice into their personal idea books, similar to pinning pictures in Pinterest.

Zillow Digs delivers another hub of interior design and home improvement concepts, with a catalogue similar to Houzz and additionally offers information regarding home renovation costs and cost estimates, pertaining to product details, paint colours, and a multitude of the interior design paraphernalia to both Android and iOS users.

Wayfair is a user-friendly catalogue containing a variety of furniture items that for its purveyor’s pleasure, so they may select from this well-organised selection of items. All the offered prices are actual real-world prices, and users can even register to purchase items directly from within this very handy catalogue application on both iOS as well as Android devices.

Homestyler Interior Design offers its users to, not only view actual furniture and decor in full 3D in their own homes prior to purchasing them; it even allows the user to engage in complete interior overalls by allowing them to redesign their home interior. The app arrives with a massive collection of HD 3D models reflecting real-life interior decor items to provide users with a sense of their stylistic fit and feel inside their own homes once again prior to any necessary purchases being done.

With the ever-increasing flood of new games through the gates of the two main app stores i.e. Google and Apple discerning noteworthy titles becomes an increasingly difficult task, however certain game series have a knack for bringing out the best in a mobile device game. The below list rotates around a number of these titles that seem to improve with every new version and some titles are even totally to the market.

Crimbo offers a bit of a strange Christmassy look on Limbo, and Limbo for those not in the know is one of Playdead’s renowned 2010 puzzlers, known for its dark mood and a silhouetted visual artistry. Then in a sudden flash of inspiration, the developer, Digi Chain Games, realised before anyone else did that Limbo was missing a Santa Claus. Fortunately they immediately set about rectifying the situation in the currently under development Crimbo that has the benefit of the same silhouetted style. This combined with a load of deadly traps hidden in the surroundings, ready to get the jump on dear little Santa with in most cases zero warning.

Glass Road from Uwe Rosenberg will serve up a Board Game Deluge and it promises to be in the App Store quite soon. So far November delivered one crazy month to board game enthusiasts, with the arrival of Steam: Rails to Riches, Steam, Le Havre: The Inland Port, and according to latest reports you might even get lucky with Glass Road from Uwe Rosenberg. For those inexperienced in Glass Road play, it is a tile placement and resource management game to keep from one to four players busy in a glass making Bavarian forest of olden times. Players will need to run their glass and brick works simultaneously while they chop down trees for fuel to keep the fires going etc. Fifteen specialists in glass production will assist players and the cycle repeats to keep the money flowing into their coffers while growing and maintaining a balancing act between the resources.

IOS mobile gamers have definitely not been left out in the cold this year, with a massive influx of new material flooding in on a daily basis, which for the greater part contains pretty remarkable gaming content. The increasingly high standard of games is not only due to developers having gained massive amount of experience but also due to the general high standard of applications and the competition it creates. The games below offer something for everyone with varying styles of action and skill levels.

Downwell represents the genre of endless fallers in style and distinction, by requiring you the player to guide a little boy on his way down the well by using only the boy’s trusty Gunboots and your finely honed reflexes. The game requires players to unlock upgrades, break combos, and set a couple of high scores in the process while enjoying the infinite reserves of newly generated levels that will have you back at the controls time after time.

Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons represents one of the highly popular console games that made the fashionable leap into the iOS arena. The first thing striking any new player, after a couple of minutes since your first time entry into the game, is that it is a masterpiece in storytelling that, to be fair, should be played by the whole world. And in question to answer, yes, that means you too and start before Christmas, so get shaking. This critically acclaimed adventuring game is the brain fruit of Joseph Farres, the Swedish film director, that was involved in working with the folks at Starbreeze Studios in order to breathe life into his vision. What sets this endless runner a world apart from all its kindred spirits is the depth of play.

Lumo’s Cat provide mobile gamers with the opportunity to engage in one of the most strange, bizarre, and downright adorable mobile titles in any App Store at the moment. I’m at a loss for words to describe gameplay that involves a combination of customisable cats joined with a bit of tactical napping. This game is definitely for people that always dreamt of customising a cat, wow, you’re strange, but in a good way!

Saying that the Apple App Store offers a huge variety of games would be a total understatement, on a daily basis there are literally thousands of new gaming titles hitting the virtual shelves. This type of unprecedented situation results in numerous fantastic gaming titles being lost and buried under mountains of uninspired clones and soulless MMOs. Keeping the aforesaid in mind we sometimes require a spotlight to emphasise the developers and games that still keeps fighting the good fight, the games discussed below should assist in their cause.

Lumino City is one of those games that are good enough to immediately pick up and start playing while setting aside any other games you might be playing at the moment. This game is one of the most creative and original mobile videogames to hit the Apple Store’s shelves this year. It has, for the greater good of mobile iOS gamers everywhere, received a remodelling from its development team at State of Play. The BAFTA acclaimed PC launched original puzzler is now made available on iOS mobile devices. Out of all the various aspects that makes this game great the single one that stands out the most is the fact that each individual level is a completely original piece of art handcrafted out of paper, miniature lights, cardboard, and motors all added together to provide an already awe-inspiring game with an extra layer of marvel. It is available from the Apple Store at £3.99.

Beneath the Lighthouse, presents an already puzzle filled world with yet another puzzler; however, this game is for the one above is an absolute must to experience. The game presents players with beautiful, skilfully constructed graphics and artwork done justice by a smooth playing gaming engine and generates incredible passion during gameplay. The developers, Nitrome, have historically proven that their team finds it impossible to create bad games. Players will find great pride and frustration in guiding the main gaming character, which happens to be a ball wearing a hat, as it progresses through every level by twisting and manipulating his surroundings. The innovative gaming controls will engage, puzzle, and punish both old and new fans, so best to get practising those stress relieving breathing exercises before starting gameplay.

With BlackBerry devices falling from grace in recent times, the iPhone has become a welcome replacement to its business-oriented users. With advance and a greater general acceptance of electronic media in the business world iOS devices have become an absolutely indispensable professional accessory. Developers having realised a golden opportunity has availed itself speedily created a new generation of highly competent and user-friendly apps to fill the then existent gap and have since been refined to meet all current possible professional needs in the electronic arena. The apps below represent the best in their class and either offer a viable improved alternative to the standard iOS fare, or provide new functionality to any professional iOS user.

Microsoft Outlook Marvel app is available for free, and it combines all your contacts, sort and prioritise calendars, and email into one easy to manage and navigate app. It will also sort and prioritise messages for its users and then filter the high priority messages into a separate tab, while leaving the balance to deal with at your leisure. The calendar functionality automatically schedules meetings according to filters set by its user, it will also set automatic reminders for the above meetings, and synchronise emails, meetings, and tasks accordingly across all your accounts and devices it is installed on. For those that was some reason prefer not to use Outlook there exists another equally great alternative, namely Inbox from Google.

CamScanner Pro offers users the capacity to transform their phones and turn it into a mobile document scanner that allows you to scan and save pictures and documents on the fly as either PDFs or image files. Users will benefit from the ability to organise their files commuting or waiting on an appointment, and instantly mail them to colleagues or clients as the need arises. It also features the capacity to link up with on-line storage units such as Box, Dropbox, Google Drive for safekeeping and thereby synchronising across all your accounts and devices, quite handy in case of the loss of your mobile device. The app developed by INTSIG is available at £3.99 from the iStore. Anyone finding the app or interface not suitable are not compatible to the devices will be glad to hear of an equally brilliant alternative in Tiny Scanner Pro.

One of the most common forms of burglary, theft, mischief occurs daily due to perpetrators stealing and abusing unsecured data stored on cell phones. This data needs to be secured in order for any user to continue enjoying relative peace of mind while living with all his personal & company financial banking data stored on their personal mobile devices along with a multitude of other potential problem causing issues. For any user to have confidence that his phone remains as safe and secure as possible a specialist security application need to be installed and properly set up. The apps listed below are definitely not the newest all the prettiest, because security apps should not be chosen because there are new, shiny, bright, or offer the best graphics in the business, they should be chosen on tested effectiveness and a proven record of accomplishment built up over a period.

Avast represents one of the security and antivirus packages that have built up an enviable reputation by being voted the best of its kind in numerous respected mobile security publications. In addition, its test results proved it as one of the most effective version after version, year after year. It offers a comprehensive package that includes privacy advice, malware protection, antitheft tools, antivirus scanning, and a filter that will block undesired calls. The app even features a firewall effective on rooted devices and can be downloaded from Google Play.

Lookout as an app is as old as smart phones themselves, it too has proven itself to be extremely reliable and effective, and have remained at the top of the game as one of the recognised best in the industry security applications. Its well-deserved reputation of excellence has been borne out by a multitude of tests performed over many years. It features a scanner to detect malware, viruses, spyware, and adware in its free version, with additional tools to ensure safe backups, browsing, as well as a function to remotely lock and wipe your device if stolen or lost, and is available on Google Play.

Most Android devices arrive with a brilliant preloaded device-tracking feature accessible through the standard Android Device Manager. It is also the official Google phone tracking service and will assist you in locating your lost phone or mobile device. Users that cannot recover their devices will be able to erase all their data remotely, as well as reset their screen lock PIN. It will also work with all devices you choose to associate with your personal Google account.

It appears that the developers at Apple may be busy with the creation of an iOS app solely purposed in assisting with troubleshooting issues on iPads and iPhones.
This latest news flash arrives from uSwitch Tech and shows screenshots that will enable iOS users to get their iKit items serviced quicker and with less hassle. The reveal is according to insider knowledge, confirmed by Sonny Dickson who has insight into the daily goings-on at Apple’s Infinite Loop HQ.

According to the leaks liege, the app will require users to respond by answering basic questions regarding the device needing repair, Apple will then attempt to utilise the pertinent data supplied by the customer in order to facilitate a resolution to the problem with much greater speed, thereafter it will assist users to book the necessary service for their device. Users will then be able to send in their device for its service or just put a call through to Apple themselves. This process will offer Apple users a significantly more advanced service functionality then the current repairs aspect found in the Apple Store App. The images revealed an interesting aspect, which shows there may even be an option for a live on-line chat with the Apple support team.

The under development app will alleviate iOS users from the mundane task of attempting to secure a reservation at their Genius Bar, which is at the moment frequently a near impossibility in some of the busier areas. This systematic procedure should also provide a greater degree of accuracy in preventing devices not needing repairs to enter into the system, instead of just allowing the user via the correct guidance procedure to repair the item themselves in the comfort of their own home.

If successful this procedure would improve Apple’s rendering of services immeasurably, by saving the customer on making unnecessary trips to the iStore, prevent unnecessary phone calls, prevent a customer from bring without his phone for extended periods of time while in for an unnecessary service. For Apple it would improve the ability to render services by preventing unnecessary devices not needing technical repairs from ever entering their system and thereby speed up delivery on the lighter workload in the technical service department.

iPhone and iPad users that face the pleasant & unpleasant prospect of planning an upcoming trip or family holiday need to take heed, Apple smart devices and the applications that turn them into useful tools have progressed at a rapid rate. Many apps currently feature web services able to assist you in planning your trip with minimal input required from you, and additionally keep your travel itinerary, flight details, hotel bookings, car rentals, and other documents neatly organised in one app. One of the most assistive features offered by the top end apps, firstly is to perform these actions with minimal input from your side. Secondly there is no more need to spend hours inputting relevant names, arrival, and departure times, collection and drop off times, book in and book out times, and tons of necessary but irritating document data that is part and parcel of international travel.

TripCase will organise your trip for you automatically with very little input required from your side. Normally confirmation emails regarding travel details contain far too much irrelevant information you do not require during your trip, this app cut away all the unnecessary clutter, organises all the relevant details in a nicely set out timeline. It performs all these functions, by doing 95% of all the culling and collating work for you, and compiles a single itinerary that provides you with a clear chronologically ordered overview of the upcoming journey. The featured view includes all flight details even on multiple flight stopovers with live updates on delays and cancellations as well as alternative flights, hotel addresses and booking numbers and times, car rental reservations, and more. TripCase is available free from the App Store.

Trip Splitter allows travellers journeying in groups to easily keep track of which person owes what, this makes it exceptionally easy to use by allowing users to quickly split their bills and continually monitor everyone’s financial responsibilities, expenditures, and contributions towards various trip items such as food, fuel, accommodation, and a vast number of other expenses. Its instant service could potentially save unpleasant arguments, while ensuring fellow travellers are always aware of how the group’s finances appear. Trip splitter is available at $1.99 from the App Store.